Youngest Die First
by DarkHououmon
Summary: Jaegar and Nash, the poachers responsible for Donnie's parents' deaths, return to finish the job. Things only get worse when Eliza is accidentally poisoned with Black Mamba snake venom...


Disclaimer: I do not own The Wild Thornberrys or any of its characters. Owned by Klasky. 

Author's note: This and Other Secrets I started writing on a messageboard. I decided to post them here. ; I don't like how they turned out, but...oh well.   


YOUNGEST DIE FIRST   
DarkHououmon   
  
  
  


A shadow casted over the land. The tall mountain, crumbling slightly, was darkened by the presence of the foreign object hovering above it. Animals moving so fast you can't tell what they were dashed inside the mountain. A hand reached out. The shadow darkened to almost black. The shadow casted only on part of the mountain. The hand gripped into the side of the rocky formation, and pulled out one of the animals. The hand opened up to reveal... 

A termite. 

A wild screech rang out, and the shadow was revealed to be Donnie Thornberry. The young Bornean child stuffed the termite into his nose, then plugged on nostril and blew with the other. The termite went flying through the air, and crashed into the side of the mountain, which turned out to be a termite mound. 

"Donnie!" An annoyed teenager's voice caught the young boy's ears, and he quickly became excited. Debbie walked through the tall grass just in time to see the wild child blow the termite from his nose. "I thought you were over that habit." She put her hands to her hips. Donnie just laughed and said, "Oh be quiet!" The teenager rolled her eyes. "Whatever." 

Then she roughly picked up the small boy. "Come on, Tarzan. It's time for your..." She winced a bit. "Bath." Donnie's eyes widened, and he stopped chittering. He pulled himself from Debbie's grasp, and made a run for it towards the plains. 

A low growl escaped Debbie's throat. "DONNIE! Come back here!" With that, she run after the child as the sun shined brightly above them.   
  
  


In another part of the plains, the sound of a knife scraping against bone could be heard. Part of the knife glowed. A fire was blazing in the center of the area. It was well hidden in the shelter of the trees. A man grunted as the knife caught on a dent in the bone, and pulled the knife back. "You'd think they would find another way to do this.." He growled to himself. When more light came through, the man's profession was revealed. 

He was a poacher. 

"Oh shut up, and keep scraping that bone!" A slightly taller man stood before the other, a long machete clutched in his hands. "We need a new weapon if we are to succeed." 

The other poacher dropped the knife. "I've been doing this for hours!" He stood up, and looked slightly upward. "Why don't you do it, Jaegar?" The man, Jaegar, snarled and thrusted his machete forward. The tip of the blade stopped inches in front of the shorter man's neck. 

With a vicious hiss, he shouted, "NEVER QUESTION ME!" He then pulled the machete away, and spoke in a softer voice with a hint of threat in it. "Do you understand, Nash?" Nash nodded swiftly, and stepped back. He knelt down, and slowly picked up the knife. He resumed his duty of sharpening the bone into an effective tool. 

Jaegar watched silently, and turned his head. A small breeze kicked up, and swayed his hair in the wind for a second. Then in his ear ever so slightly, he heard the sound of a young child chattering wildly. Or at least he thought it was a boy. He gripped his long knife tightly in his fist. Nash put the bone and blade on the ground as he watched Jaegar's reaction to a sound he didn't hear. "Jaegar?" "Shh!" "What is it?" He asked in a low voice. 

"Shh!" Jaegar whispered harshly again. The two poachers watched and waited.   
  
  


"Donnie!" Debbie ran after the small boy, and wasn't too far behind. But the boy could really move. The teenager slowed down in front of the clearing, not noticing the two men there, and gasped for breath. "Don..nie..." 

The child didn't stop running. He kept dashing towards the clearing, and burst through. He slowly stopped as he saw something that caught his interest. A small bug crawled up from the ground, and Donnie quickly snatched it in his hand. He jibbered happily, and repeated the same thing he'd done with the termite. 

But all the while he never saw the poachers behind him. 

"What the?" Nash gasped in astonishment. "An ape man?" The taller man shook his head, his dark eyes never leaving the boy. "He looks familiar..." He scratched his head. He studied the small boy carefully. His movements were unlike any he's ever seen, and his behaviors were...odd. Odd didn't even describe it. Jaegar scratched his chin thoughtfully, then noticed the style of the boy's hair and the teeth. 

Jaegar's eyes widened, and then a slight smile came across his face. "So, they had a child." The shorter poacher stood next to him. "Who?" "Just look at him. His hair. His teeth." He pointed at the boy in front of them. Nash narrowed his eyes, and in a moment recognized him. "There are people who've a lot of teeth and wild hair, but none looks more like that than..." 

"We killed his meddling parents," Jaegar stated, "But who is taking care of him now?" As soon as he said this, Donnie took off into one of the bushes, and a teenager quickly snatched him, not seeing Jaegar or Nash standing there, watching in silence.   
  
  


Donnie screeched in shock as he was lifted from the ground in Debbie's tight grip. "You're getting a bath, and that's final!" Then the girl walked off into the distance away from the clearing and towards something in the distance.   
  


"What should we do?" Nash asked quietly. 

"Follow them." Jaegar stated darkly, and soon the two poachers slinked away behind the blonde teenager. She still held the struggling boy. 'The boy's afraid of a little water.' Jaegar found this amusing, but continued to follow. He and his partner stopped and hid behind a large termite mound that was sitting in front of the teenager's campsite. What was in front of them surprised the poachers. 

A large yellow and black RV known as the Commvee. 

"The Thornberrys." The tallest poacher said in an angry voice. "There's not many poachers, or people for that matter, who don't know of their work protecting the wildlife." Jaegar never encountered them, but he still had a strong hatred towards the family. They threatened his very job. 

The poachers saw a young girl coming from inside the Commvee. She wasn't a teenager. She was a preteen. She wore a sky blue T-Shirt and tan pants. Beside her was a gray furred chimpanzee who, surprisingly, wore dark blue shorts and a striped T-Shirt. The wild child broke loose of Debbie's grip and ran towards the red haired girl. 

"Hi, Donnie!" She said cheerfully. The boy jumped into the girl's arms and shuddered with fright. The girl took one look at the boy, and then shot a stern look towards the blonde. "What did you do?" "Eliza, all I did was say the word 'bath' and...." Donnie yelled again. "Debbie, you know he doesn't like..." She didn't finish her sentence. 

Debbie growled, and shrugged. "Fine, I won't say the b word again, but he still needs one." She walked towards the Commvee. "And you're going to give it to him." She smiled slyly and before Eliza could protest, Debbie slammed the Commvee door, leaving her outside with Donnie and the chimp, Darwin. 

Eliza fumed and placed the Bornean boy on the ground. A piece of paper slipped out of his leopard spotted pants. The redhead lowered her position and picked up the paper. A tear nearly escaped her eye. It was the drawing Donnie had done back in Borneo of his parents. "You miss your parents, don't you?" The young boy slowly nodded, but didn't cry. He held it back. Eliza knelt down. 

"It's okay to be upset. But it is nice to know that their deaths weren't in vain. They saved the orangutans' lives." She choked back a sob in her throat. Then her voice darkened. "I just hope those poachers have been locked up." She turned to the boy, and picked him up. Donnie greeted her with a lick. Eliza laughed, and said, "Come on, Donnie. Let's get it over with." The chimpanzee chittered and followed quickly behind.   
  
  


The two people watching were not amused by what they've heard. Nash was really close to bolting out, while Jaegar clenched his machete tighter. "What does she know? Locked up? Ha!" He narrowed his eyes. "But the boy seems to remember us." 

Nash forgot his anger for a moment. "How? He remembers his parents..." "He knows they were killed." A finger stroked the serrated side of the long machete. A thoughtful look appeared on Jaegar's face. "It's slim, but he may have indeed witnessed our little murder." He pulled the blade towards himself. 

"So do we kill him?" 

Jaegar chuckled. "No...at least not yet." He eyed the Commvee, and could barely make out the figures of people inside. "Not yet..." He lifted up the blade. "First I think we should have a little fun...." Nash watched his partner nervously as the taller person grinned evilly. The lifted blade glinted in the sunlight, and reflected the man's face. 

"W-What do you have in mind?" Nash asked timidly. A dark laugh escaped Jaegar's throat. Grinning, he replied "You'll see...you'll see..."   


Eliza held Donnie up in the air. The boy was soaking wet. He had just taken his bath. He jittered and jumped down. He shook his body to get the water off. The redhead shielded her face from the droplets of water that splashed over her. Donnie then looked around. With a squeal, he headed back towards the termite mound that he was at earlier. Eliza shook her head. "Why does he always go there?" She heard a voice from behind. She swirved around. 

It was just the gray furred chimp, Darwin. 

"Why do you ask?" She knew it was a stupid question, but she had to know. The disgusted chimpanzee grimaced as the wild child stuffed some termites into his mouth and spit them back out, one at a time. "This is sickening. If that were me, I wouldn't...." "Dar, chill!" The young girl hissed at her chimp friend. Startled, Darwin stepped back. Eliza's eyes softened, and she said, "Sorry...just kinda snapped." 

Darwin narrowed his eyes, and shrugged. "You seem a bit edgy lately. Anything the matter?" Eliza looked at him, then towards the mound. She remained silent. The chimpanzee seemed more determined. "Come on, tell me." She didn't answer still, and Darwin got an idea of what might be wrong. "Oh, did Debbie tell anyone your secret?" Laughter was his answer. "Darwin, that's silly! Debbie said she wouldn't tell, and even if she did," She pointed towards the Commvee, "She would turn into a baboon if she told my secret." 

"Well, something's wrong with you. What is it?" Darwin asked. The young girl sighed. "I'm worried, Dar. About Donnie..." Her gaze fell on Donnie, then on the ground. She stared at her shadow, casted by the sun. Darwin slowly walked over, and placed a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Why do you worry? He's in no danger." 

The girl just looked away, looking fearful. 

"It just scares me, Darwin. The poachers killed his parents...what would stop them from trying to kill him, too?" She choked back a tear. 

Darwin looked concerned. "I don't think so. I would doubt that they remember him, or know where he is." Then he continued, "What are the odds of them finding Donnie? That's nearly impossible." The chimp tried to sound positive. But he didn't think his advice would work. "Just try not to worry, Eliza." Eliza raised up a finger and traced a hidden tear from her right eye. "Alright." The two resumed watching Donnie, playing happily about 5 ft in front of them.   
  
  


Nash looked confused. His partner had something devious in mind, but he just didn't know what it was. He watched cautiously as Jaegar pulled out a small needle, a pinkish fluid sloshing around inside. He opened up the end of it and dumped out the liquid. The poacher then took out a small bottle with no label or warning on it. Nash narrowed his eyes. There was no way of telling what the stuff was. 

"This will do." Jaegar spoke darkly as he opened up the lid of the bottle, shaded dark blue. The liquid inside was mostly clear, but had a tint of whitish yellow in it. The smell was overwhelming. Nash jumped back, and covered his nose. "Geeze! That thing stinks!" The tall poacher ignored him. He gently tilted the bottle and the liquid poured ever so slowly into the needle that he carried in his hand. Once enough was in, he closed the bottle and set it aside. 

"So, what's that for?" Nash asked. 

Jaegar answered, "Well, Nash," He tightened the lid back on the needle, and continued to say, "This fluid is the venom of one of the poisonous snakes here in Africa." The short man's eyes widened. "But this isn't that fast acting. The venom has dulled but is still lethal." He gripped the needle tightly. "It now would take around 3 days to kill when normally it could kill within hours. But it'll do." 

Nash scratched his head. "But I thought we weren't going to kill the boy yet." "And we're not. The poison will..." Jaegar chuckled to himself. Still hidden behind the rock, he watched as Donnie drew closer and closer. He picked up a thin gun, and pushed the needle in it. _'He can't escape this.'_ He hadn't told Nash one other detail. He was thinking that he would give the boy the antidote if he agrees to show them where the orangutans were. 

"It's now or never." Donnie had gotten too close. Jaegar readied the gun to fire. And the worst part was...Donnie never saw it coming. 

But Eliza did.   
  


Eliza's eyes snapped open in pure terror. She noticed the barrel, the two holes, pointing straight at Donnie. Something sharp was sticking out of one of the holes. It appeared to be a needle. She ran away from Darwin, and didn't think straight. All she could think of was to get the boy out of there. "DONNIE!" She screamed as she roughly pushed the Bornean boy out of the way as... 

BLAM! 

The gun fired! 

Eliza never had time to react. She screamed in pain as she felt something thin and very sharp penetrate into her arm. She heard the sound of a man gasping. Then the pain took over. She could feel the liquid hurting her already. 'It's poison.' Darwin screeched in horror, and Donnie could only stare shocked as Eliza's face grew pale. 

Eliza swayed back and forth, and finally fell to the ground. Darwin and Donnie rushed to her side. Darwin shook her, trying to wake her up. "Eliza? Eliza?" He asked, and was horrified to see the girl not responding, but shaking slightly violently. Donnie whined, and turned back and ran towards the Commvee. Darwin placed a hand on the girl's forehead, and yelped. It was burning hot.   
  


"I hit the wrong person!" Jaegar cursed to himself. He threw the gun to the ground. "Now the plan won't work!" Nash backed away from the man. He was also angry at the girl's interference. But he didn't think Jaegar had to be that angry. He then started to think about something. He noticed the boy's reaction to the girl getting hurt. Perhaps there was another way... 

"Jaegar?" 

"Yes?" 

"Why not use the girl?" 

Jaegar blinked in surprise. "The girl?" He looked back at the 12 year old lying on the floor shivering. Nash nodded promptly, and pointed in that direction. "The boy reacted in fear when she was hurt. Apparantly he has some bond with this kid. Perhaps..." Jaegar's eyes brightened. The plan could work! They just need to adjust some changes first. "Let's see how strong that bond is..." 

The man got up and slowly walked away, trying not to be noticed. "Come on, Nash. Let's go." Nash blinked several times, and picked up the machete that Jaegar put on the ground. He quickened his pace to catch up.   
  
  


Donnie rushed towards the Commvee door, and started hitting it like a drum. He screeched loudly a couple of times, and the door swung open. The boy was hit and flew back to the side of the Commvee. He quickly got up, and ran to the door. It was Nigel who answered. The naturalist knelt down to the boy's level. He could tell that something was really bothering the boy. 

"Donnie, my boy, what is it?" 

Donnie momentarily stopped moving, the frantically waved his arms around like he had when Eliza got appendicitis. Nigel brought his hand to his mouth, trying to decipher what the boy was trying to tell him. "Is something wrong?" He asked. The Bornean boy quickly pointed in the direction of the termite mound that was close by. Nigel picked up the boy, and turned in that direction. He squinted his eyes in the sunlight. At first he saw nothing, but then he saw the form of a chimp standing over a collapsed girl. And he knew who that only could be.... 

"ELIZA!!" The man yelled. He ran towards the fallen figure of his daughter. He fell to his knees, and slowly picked up the shaking girl. Eliza had her eyes closed tightly, but she was still awake, barely. She opened up one eye slowly and whispered, "T-They tried to..." She coughed violently. Nigel placed a finger in front of her lips. "Shush...Eliza. Let's get you out of the sun." 

The naturalist then noticed the needle piercing into her arm. He gasped, and quickly pulled it out. A small sample of the liquid was still in tact. And from the looks of things, Eliza wouldn't survive for long....   
  


Marianne was working on the clips they had recently recorded when Nigel had gone out. She had her hands full and Debbie couldn't hear anything. So Nigel had decided to go out. Marianne wiped her forehead, and turned towards the blonde. "Debbie, you do know it was your turn to give Donnie a bath." She scolded her. The teenager only shrugged. "Hey, she seemed willing to do it." The mother cocked her eyebrow. "Debbie..." "Oh, alright. I'll do it the next time." "The next 2 times." 

Debbie groaned, and pulled off her headphones. She was about to say something. But she was interrupted by the sound of a door jetting open. The two swiftly turned their heads towards the door. Their reactions were pretty much the same as Nigel's. They ran towards the naturalist, who held a pale, sweating, shaking girl in his arms. Debbie gasped, "Eliza?" Marianne grasped her husband's arm. "Nigel, what happened?" 

"I don't know. I found her lying down there with Darwin. She had a needle in her." He handed the needle to Marianne, who examined it closely. "I know it's venom." He said solemnly. Sad eyes gazed at the frail child. "It's fast-working, too, yet weaker than it should be." 

Debbie gripped Eliza's hand in her own. "What can we do?" Nigel lowered his gaze. It seemed that there was nothing they could do right now. Marianne gasped loudly. The two turned to her. Her face was almost as pale as Eliza's. She stared at the needle, shaking violently. "Nigel..." 

"Yes?" 

"This is Black Momba venom..."   


I'm lost after this. I don't know what to do after this part. ; 


End file.
